Our Beliefs

The United Methodist Church is an 11-million-strong global church that opens hearts, opens doors and opens minds through active engagement with our world.

John Wesley and the early Methodists placed primary emphasis on Christian living, on putting faith and love into action.

Beliefs of the United Methodist Church

God – We believe there is one God, both holy and loving, who is Creator, Sovereign and Preserver of all things, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit (the Trinity). The three are distinct but inseparable, one in essence and power. Matthew 3:16-17 indicates the presence of all three when Jesus was baptized.

Jesus – We believe in Jesus Christ, begotten Son of the Father and not made or created, fully God and fully human, in whom the divine and human natures are perfectly and inseparably united. He is the eternal Word made flesh (John 1:1-2). He was born of the Virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. He lived a sinless life (Hebrews 4:15). He provided by his crucifixion on the cross a vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood. After His death and burial, He was bodily resurrected from the grave (I Corinthians 15:3-8), ascended into heaven, presently sits at the right hand of the Father and will come again (Acts 1:9-11) to judge the living and the dead.

Holy Spirit – We believe in the Holy Spirit who proceeds from and is one in essence with the Father and the Son. One receives the Holy Spirit when one accepts Jesus as his/her personal Savior. Those who live by the Spirit will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature (Galatians 5:16).

Bible – We believe the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament to be the only inspired, authoritative Word of God, containing all that is necessary for salvation from sin.

The Human Condition- We believe that all people are born with a sinful nature which results in sinful actions against both God and humanity (Romans 3:23); hence, all humans are powerless to save themselves from the wrath of God. Many people today believe they are going to heaven. If you ask them why they think they are going to heaven, many will say, “Because I am a good person.” When Jesus talked to the rich young man (Matthew 19:16-30, Mark 10:17-31 & Luke 18:18-30), He stated, “No one is good – except God alone.” The rich young man wanted to know what good thing he needed to do to inherit eternal life. He was very good at keeping the commandments, but in the end, Jesus showed him there was one thing that he lacked. All of us have at least one thing that fails to meet God’s standard of goodness. The Apostle Paul in Romans 3:12 says, “There is no one who does good, not even one.” When we attempt to make our efforts at goodness the standard for eternal life we trample under foot the precious blood of Jesus that was shed both to cover our sins and to make us righteous in the eyes of God. When we attempt to make our efforts at goodness the standard for eternal life, we refuse God’s gift of grace.

Salvation – We believe that eternal life and salvation from sin is a gift from God (Romans 6:23) and comes only through faith in Jesus and His the unearned and unmerited grace (Ephesians 2:8-9) provided by the atoning death of Jesus on the cross; hence, faith and belief in Jesus and acceptance of Him as one’s Savior is essential for salvation and eternal life (John 3:18&36; 14:6 and Acts 4:8-12). The following Scriptures support the understanding that rejection of Jesus is rejection of God the Father also: John 5:22-23, 8:42, 15:23; Luke 10:16; I John 2:23 and 5:1.

Prior to our acceptance of Jesus as Savior the Holy Spirit awakens in us an earnest longing for deliverance from sin and death and moves us toward repentance and faith. A decisive change in the human heart (new birth) of the repentant believer occurs under the guidance of the Holy Spirit whereby one is forgiven of sin and brought into a right relationship with God (II Corinthians 5:17). This personal transformation always expresses itself as faith working by love. We believe that God desires all to have eternal life (II Peter 3:9), and all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13).

Sanctification – We believe the new birth is the first step followed by sanctifying grace which draws us toward the gift of Christian perfection, which John Wesley described as a heart “habitually filled with the love of God and neighbor” and as “having the mind of Christ and walking as he walked.”

The Future State – We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the unsaved, they who are saved unto the resurrection of eternal life (I Corinthians 15:12-58) and they who are unsaved unto the resurrection of eternal damnation and separation from God (Revelation 20:11-15).

Sacraments – We believe that baptism and the Lord’s Supper were ordained by Jesus for the Church to observe and practice.

Baptism – Baptism is not only a sign of a profession and mark of difference whereby Christians are distinguished from others that are not baptized; but it is also a sign of regeneration or the new birth. United Methodists baptize people by means of sprinkling, pouring or immersion. United Methodists baptize people of all ages including infants. We do not practice re-baptisms; instead, those seeking re-baptism are encouraged to re-affirm their baptismal vows.

Lord’s Supper (Communion or the Eucharist) – We use the elements of bread and grape juice when taking Communion. We believe that the elements only represent the body and blood of Jesus. We practice open Communion which means that all Christians may partake of the elements.

Some of the Social Principles of the United Methodist Church

Human Sexuality – We recognize that sexuality is God’s good gift to all persons. Although all persons are sexual beings whether or not they are married, sexual relations are only clearly affirmed in the marriage bond.

Marriage – We affirm the sanctity of the marriage covenant that is expressed in love, mutual support, personal commitment, and shared fidelity between a man and a woman. We support laws in civil society that define marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

Divorce – God’s plan is for lifelong, faithful marriage. However, when a married couple is estranged beyond reconciliation, even after thoughtful consideration and counsel, divorce is a regrettable alternative in the midst of brokenness.

Homosexuality – Homosexual persons no less than heterosexual persons are individuals of sacred worth. However, the United Methodist Church does not condone the practice of homosexuality and considers this practice incompatible with Christian teaching. Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches. We implore families and churches not to reject or condemn lesbian and gay members and friends.

Abortion – Our belief in the sanctity of unborn human life makes us reluctant to approve abortion. But we are equally bound to respect the sacredness of life and well-being of the mother, for whom devastating damage may result from an unacceptable pregnancy. In continuity with past Christian teaching, we recognize tragic conflicts of life with life that may justify abortion, and in such cases we support the legal option of abortion under proper medical procedures. We cannot affirm abortion as an acceptable means of birth control, and we unconditionally reject it as a means of gender selection. We oppose the use of late-term abortion known as dilation and extraction (partial-birth abortion) and call for the end of this practice except when the physical life of the mother is in danger and no other medical procedure is available, or in the case of severe fetal anomalies incompatible with life.

Alcohol and Other Drugs – We affirm our long- standing support of abstinence from alcohol as a faithful witness to God’s liberating and redeeming love for persons. We support the abstinence from the use of any illegal drugs. Since the use of illegal drugs, as well as illegal and problematic use of alcohol, is a major factor in crime, disease, death, and family dysfunction, we support education programs as well as other prevention strategies encouraging abstinence from illegal drug use and, with regard to those who choose to consume alcoholic beverages, judicious use with deliberate and intentional restraint, with Scripture as a guide.

Tobacco – We affirm our historic tradition of high standards of personal discipline and social responsibility. In light of the overwhelming evidence that tobacco smoking and the use of smokeless tobacco are hazardous to the health of persons of all ages, we recommend total abstinence from the use of tobacco.

Gambling – Gambling is a menace to society, deadly to the best interests of moral, social, economic, and spiritual life, and destructive of good government. As an act of faith and concern, Christians should abstain from gambling and should strive to minister to those victimized by the practice. The Church should promote standards and personal lifestyles that would make unnecessary and undesirable the resort to commercial gambling – including public lotteries – as a recreation, as an escape, or as a means of producing public revenue or funds for support of charities or government.